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PERSONAL NARRATIVES 


OF EVENTS IN THE 


War of the Rebellion, 


BEING PAPEKS BEAD BEFORE THE 


RHODE ISLAND SOLDIERS AND SAILORS 
HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 


Third Series —No. 7. 


providence: 

PUBLISHED BY THE SOCIETY 

1884. 




riiOVIDENCE PEESS COMPANY, 

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SERVICE WITH BUTTERY F, 


FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY, 

IN NORTH CSROLINA. 


BV 


PHILIP S. CHASE, 


[Late Second Lieutenant Battery F, Rhode Island Light Artillery. 



PROVIDENCE: 

PUBLISHED BY THE SOCIETY 
1884. 






[Edition limited to two hundred and fifty copies.] 







SERVICE WITH BATTERY F, 

FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY, 

IN NORTH CAROLINA. 


January 1, 1863, the troops in and around New- 
bern, North Carolina, were enjoying a season of 
quiet in their camps, securing the needed rest for 
both men and horses, after the expedition to Golds¬ 
boro during the latter part of the preceding month. 

The unsuccessful attempt of General Burnside 
with the Army of the Potomac to advance at Fred¬ 
ericksburg, and the return of that force to its camps 
on the north of the Rappahannock, was the principal 
subject of conversation at this time. Vague rumors 
reached us that General Burnside was not properly 
supported by some of his commanding officers, and 
an almost gloomy feeling seemed to have taken pos- 




6 


SEKVICE WITH BATTERY E, 


session of the whole force. General Burnside was 
loved by the troops in North Carolina, particularly 
that part of the force which accompanied him on the 
expedition to that State, and the expression of sym¬ 
pathy was well nigh universal, and in many instances 
concluded with remarks not complimentary to other 
officers, believing that jealousy was among the causes 
of the defeat. 

Early in the month, orders were received at 
Department Headquarters to embark a force to co¬ 
operate with the naval forces in an attack upon Wil¬ 
mington, North Carolina. Belger’s Battery was 
assigned to this force. The pieces were dismounted, 
and loaded on board a schooner, and thirty-one 
horses put on another schooner. Lieutenant Wil¬ 
liam A. Arnold, with a detail of men, accompanied 
them to Moorehead City, under sail, at which place 
the remaining officers and men were to join them on 
their arrival. On the twenty-fifth of January, 
Lieutenant Thomas Simpson, with forty men, was 
ordered to Moorehead City, by rail, to disembark the 
battery and return to Newbern ; the horses were left 
on board and transferred to a battery of the Third 



FIKST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY. 7 

New York Artillery, in exchange for the same num¬ 
ber from that command. 

Major-General J. G. Foster, in a report to the 
committee on the conduct of the war, thus writes of 
this movement: " I received orders from Major Gen¬ 
eral Halleck to co-operate with the naval forces in an 
attack on Wilmington, North Carolina. All the 
preparations were completed, and the troops about 
being embarked at Beaufort, North Carolina, when 
the news arrived of the foundering of the Monitor, 
at sea. The loss of this iron-clad, which was the 
only armored vessel in service, of sufficient light 
draught to enter the new inlet of Cape Fear river 
and take up position in reverse of the enemy’s bat¬ 
teries on Federal Point, caused a change in the des¬ 
tination of the expedition. I was then ordered to 
take the expedition to South Carolina, and co-operate 
with Admiral Du Pont in the projected attack on 
Charleston, South Carolina. 

"Accordingly, the fleet having on board about twelve 
thousand (12,000) men, the best troops in North 
Carolina, sailed from Beaufort harbor. North Caro¬ 
lina, on the second of February, 1863. Arriving at 


8 


SERVICE WITH BATTERY F, 


Hilton Head, I paid my respects to Major-General 
Hunter. I then called on Admiral Du Pont to 
arrange the plan of the joint attack. The Admiral 
exiDlained that he could not be ready in less than two 
weeks, in consequence of having to increase the 
thickness of the decks of the monitors. I then de¬ 
cided to profit by the delay in obtaining some 100- 
pound Parrotts for siege guns, and after informing 
General Hunter of my intention, left for Fortress 
Monroe for that purpose. After I left. General 
Hunter issued an order breaking up my organiza¬ 
tion, and merging my whole force into the small 
corps commanded by him. He also ordered my 
personal staff to leave his department forthwith. 
Under these circumstances I requested and obtained 
authority from General Halleck to return to North 
Carolina. The twelve thousand (12,000) picked 
men that were thus lost to my command were not 
used with any effect in conjunction with Admiral 
Du Pout’s attack on Charleston ; and the expedition 
thus failed.” 

The war correspondents’ version of the trouble 
between Generals Hunter and Foster was somewhat 


FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY. 


9 


different from the report of General Foster, and short 
extracts from some of their letters may be of interest 
here. The New York Herald correspondent, under 
date of Port Eoyal, South Carolina, February 9, 
1863, wrote : 

"Foster’s expedition is at a standstill — worse 
even, for the troops are disembarking from the trans¬ 
ports, and taking up their quarters on St. Helena 
Island. All the mystery which enshrouded the expe¬ 
dition for so many weeks is thus useless, and many 
days must elapse before anything can be achieved by 
it. Reports are rife as to disagreements between 
Generals Hunter and Foster, and it would seem as 
though the authorities at Washington had re-enacted 
the Butler-Banks embroglio with still worse results. 
General Hunter, however, does not seem disposed 
to leave his department, but as it is clearly impos¬ 
sible for two heads of departments to live amicably 
in the same locality, one of them vacates and goes 
North for additional instructions. General Foster 
leaves to-morrow by the ^Arago,’ and you must not, 
therefore, expect to hear anything further from this 
expedition for at least three weeks to come.” 


10 


SERVICE WITH BATTERY F, 


The same correspondent under date of February 
11, 1863, wrote : 

"The vessels comprising the expedition which 
sailed from Beaufort, North Carolina, on the twenty- 
ninth ult., have lain quietly at anchor in Port Royal 
harbor ever since their arrival. Up to to-night the 
troops on board of them have not, in a single instance, 
reported for duty to General Hunter, in whose 
department they are located. General Foster, their 
former commander, followed them hither a few days 
after their arrival, made an excursion to Warsaw 
and Ossibau sounds, went on a reconnoitering trip to 
Folly river, and left yesterday for North Carolina 
again, having, during his stay, not only failed to 
report for duty to General Hunter, but, as I learn, 
having issued an order, just prior to his departure, 
placing his corps under General Naglee’s command, 
and assuring his troops that his column was in every 
way distinct and separate from General Hunter’s 
department.” 

The Boston Journal contained the following under 
date of Moorehead City, February 12, 1863 : 

" This morning the steamer' S. R. Spaulding’ came 



FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY. 11 


in from Port Royal with Major-General Foster and 
staff, who is on his way to Washington to see whether 
himself or General Hunter shall command the expe¬ 
dition now off the South Carolina coast. General 
Hunter is commander of that Department, and Gen¬ 
eral Foster is commander of the North Carolina 
Department. The latter having entered where Gen¬ 
eral Hunter has jurisdiction, the latter, being senior 
officer also, intends to be commader. General Fos¬ 
ter demurs, takes the ' Spaulding,’ and steams for 
headquarters. So the expedition is delayed — so 
the country suffers — so expectations vanish — so 
hopes fade.” 

After the departure of General Foster for the 
North, General Hunter issued the following order : 

" Headquarters Department of the South, 
Hilton Head, Port Royal, S. C., 

February 19, 1863. 

"Special Orders, No. 97. 

"Two members of General Foster’s staff, now 
sojourning within the limits of this department, hav¬ 
ing been engaged in sending North a steamer belong¬ 
ing to this command, and necessary for the operations 


12 


SERVICE WITH BATTERY E, 


about to commence — such steamer being sent away 
clandestinely, and without the knowledge, consent, 
or order of the Major-General commanding — and it 
being found that many, if not all, the members of 
General Foster’s staff have indulged in statements 
and remarks tending to create disaffection, insubordi¬ 
nation and mutiny, it is hereby ordered that all the 
members of the staff of Major-General John G. Fos¬ 
ter, commanding the Department of North Carolina, 
now within the limits of the Department of the 
South, shall quit this department by the first steamer 
going North. 

” By command of Major General D. Hunter, 
"Charles G. Halpine, 
"Assistant Adjutant General, 

"Tenth Army Corps.” 

General Hunter issued General Order No. 13, 
which incorporated the troops from North Carolina 
as a part of the Tenth Corps, but on the twenty-third 
of February issued General Order No. 15, paragraph 
HI of which revoked so much of General Order No. 
13, as assigned the troops from North Carolina to 


FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY. 13 

the Tenth Army Corps, and they remained a part of 
the Eighteenth Corps. 

The afiair was discussed editorially by the leading 
daily papers in the North, nearly, if not quite, all 
arguing against the course pursued by General Fos¬ 
ter, and yet it does not appear that General Halleck 
intended the troops from General Foster’s Depart¬ 
ment should be attached to General Hunter’s com¬ 
mand. 

The order to ” swap” horses with the New York 
battery we considered a bad bargain; we always 
took great pride in the appearance of our horses, and 
considered them worth, in every respect, much more 
than the ones we received by the change, but as we 
were not consulted on the subject or allowed to 
object, the trade was made. 

At that time I held a warrant as Sergeant, but had 
been acting First Sergeant since the return from 
the Goldsboro expedition, where First Sergeant 
Massie was severely wounded. On the eighteenth of 
February, while on ” battery drill,” Captain Belger 
assigned the three ranking non-commissioned officers 
to the command of sections — platoons under Upton’s 


2 



14 


SERVICE WITH BATTERY F, 


tactics—that is, acting as lieutenants. The Cap¬ 
tain gave us lively work during that drill, and one of 
the results of that day’s work occurred the next day 
as follows : The building occupied as barracks for 
the men was a large two-story house, with a piazza 
in front, which appeared to have been used in days 
past as a boarding-house. The front entrance was in 
the centre, with a large room on each side, that on 
the right being the Captain’s office, and the one on 
the left the First Sergeant’s room. I was sitting in 
my room after reveille roll-call attending to the duties 
of the hour, when the Captain walked in. I remem¬ 
ber the incident as clearly as if it were but yesterday. 
Standing a few seconds looking at me he said: 
" Sergeant, write a recommendation for a commission 
for yourself, and I will sign it,” and without further 
remark went to his office. After some time spent 
in anxious thought upon the subject, I ventured 
to write what I thought to be a good document of the 
kind wanted, and took it to the Captain; he read it 
through, and without a word of comment tore it into 
small pieces, and throwing it away, said: "I will 
write it myself.” The recommendation was for- 


FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ATTILLERY. 15 


warded to Ehode Island, and in course of time a 
vacancy occurred — Lieutenant 'William A. Arnold 
having resigned — and I received an appointment as 
Second Lieutenant, was assigned to the same bat¬ 
tery, and on the seventeenth day of May, 1863, was 
mustered as such. 

February 27th, 1863, the rain fell in torrents, 
and unfortunately for the troops at Newbern, that 
was the day assigned for a formal flag raising at Gen¬ 
eral Foster’s quarters. As there were no postpone¬ 
ments on account of the weather, the ceremonies 
took place according to programme, which included 
two salutes by Battery F: the first, a national sa¬ 
lute, early in the exercises, and later a Major-Gen¬ 
eral’s salute, the whole closing with a review by 
General Foster. Notwithstanding the weather, 
every part of the programme was carried out with 
military precision. 

These incidents of flag raisings, salutes, parades, 
etc., may seem to some, especially those who were 
attached to the Army of the Potomac, as uncalled 
for and out of place, considering the duty for which 
we were called into service, but it must be remem- 


16 


SERVICE WITH BATTERY F 


bered that the troops at Newbern were performing 
what might be termed garrison duty in a city taken 
from the enemy, and even then almost within the 
enemy’s lines, lohite inhabitants — those that 

remained — were not altogether friendly to its occu¬ 
pancy by the United States forces, and without doubt 
these demonstrations had the effect of proving to 
them that our troops were well drilled, well disci¬ 
plined, well equipped, and in every way prepared 
to defend the Union and the flag we upheld. 

From this time until ^larch 6th, 1863, the usual 
routine of camp duties continued, when, in obedience 
to orders, the battery left quarters in the early morn¬ 
ing to join another expedition into the country. 
Trenton, North Carolina, was reached at about 10 
o’clock, A. M., March 7th; then the command re¬ 
turned a part of the distance and took a road lead¬ 
ing towards Wilmington, North Carolina; at about 
y o’clock, p. M., bivouaced at "Young’s Cross 
Koads; ” next morning the right section, under 
command of Lieutenant Simpson, in company with a 
part of the Third New York Cavalry, proceeded to 
within nine miles of Jacksonville, North Carolina, 


FIKST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY. 17 


and returned. This expedition remained out five 
days without meeting the enemy in any considerable 
force. The battery arrived back in its quarters soon 
after 4 o’clock, p. m., March 10th. The record 
says : "No engagements; distance travelled about 
eighty-five miles.” 

I suppose these expeditions into the country, 
without any apparent object in view, were planned 
for the purpose of ascertaining if any considerable 
force of the enemy was in our immediate vicinity, 
and may be looked upon as wise precautions taken 
by the commanding ofllcers to prevent surprises upon 
and consequent disaster to our troops; but as I re¬ 
member the thoughts of an enlisted man at the time, 
they seemed to be for the sole purpose of reminding 
us that we were in the field for active duty, and were 
expected to be marching or fighting most of the 
time. Undoubtedly they were important for both 
reasons, as they did prevent the enemy coming upon 
us unawares, and there might have been danger of 
our forgetting to a certain extent the active duties 
required, in the quiet occupancy of comfortable 
quarters in the city. 


18 


SERVICE WITH BATTERY E, 


Early in March, signs of unusual activity within 
the rebel lines were noticed. The Kaleigh (N. C.) 
Progress, (rebel), in its issue of March 1, 1863, had 
the following : ” We are glad to learn that General 

D. H. Hill passed down on Tuesday to assume the 
command that has been tendered him in North Caro¬ 
lina, with the headquarters at Goldsboro. We have 
had vastly too much strategy, too much science, and 
too much ditching and digging in North Carolina. 
Had we had less of these and more fighting things 
might have been better than at present; and as Gen¬ 
eral Hill has established a reputation for being one 
of the best fighting men in the service, we may 
expect a change in management, if not a ' change in 
base’ in North Carolina. We do not expect any 
advance from Newbern for some time to come ; but 
the small force of Yankees at this place will have to 
make occasional raids to keep themselves employed 
and to keep our people alarmed and excited. These 
raids we hope in future will be confined to a very 
small circle around Newbern, and that if they at¬ 
tempt any extensive depredations they will be 
promptly met and whipped back. If this is not to 


FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY. 19 


be done, we see no use in keeping any force in North 
Carolina. There can be no doubt, we think, but 
General Hill is or soon will be in command below; 
and we can promise the people of the State that 
whatever can be done by him for their relief and 
protection will be done.” 

The thirteenth and fourteenth days of March, 
1863, were days of excitement in and around New¬ 
born, caused by the appearance of General D. H. 
Hill, with a force estimated at about sixteen thou¬ 
sand men, in our front. On the thirteenth the pick¬ 
ets on the Trent road were driven in, and troops 
w'ere sent out from the city to reinforce that point. 
Battery F was ordered to proceed to Deep Gully, a 
position near the outpost on this road, arriving there 
early in the evening of the same day, and remained 
in position through the night, returning to the city 
on the morning of the fourteenth. 

The enemy advanced on Newbern in three col¬ 
umns ; the main force by the Trent road, which leads 
direct to the city; a column by way of Trenton and 
Pollockville, which approached on our left; and a 
column which came down the north bank of the 


20 


SERVICE WITH BATTERY E, 


Neuse river and appeared upon our extreme right. 
The columns approaching our left and centre made 
no serious demonstration beyond driving in the 
pickets; but the column on our right, across the 
Neuse river, seemed to be charged with the duty of 
capturing our small force on that side of the river, 
which, at this time, consisted of the Ninety-second 
New York Volunteers, about four hundred strong, 
commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Anderson, occu¬ 
pying a small unfinished earthwork. Daylight of 
the fourteenth found the enemy about four thousand 
strong, with eighteen pieces of artillery in position, 
under command of General Pettigrew, before this 
earthwork. General Pettigrew sent a summons to 
Colonel Anderson to surrender, saying that he had 
a largo force prepared to reduce the work, but to 
avoid unnecessary destruction of life he would give 
an opportunity to capitulate, which magnanimous 
ofibr was refused, and he opened fire. This day was 
the first anniversary of the capture of Newborn by 
General Burnside, and undoubtedly the time was 
chosen with reference to that fact. We had no artil¬ 
lery on that side of the river, but a New York bat- 


FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY. 21 


tery of heavy guns was placed in position on the 
opposite bank within easy range of Pettigrew’s 
troops. The gunboat "Hunchback” ran up the river 
and trained her guns upon the enemy. The Ninety- 
second New York remained under cover of the earth¬ 
work, protected from the fire of Pettigrew’s guns, 
prepared to repel an assault should one be made. 

During the morning a force of infantry was suc¬ 
cessfully sent across the river, and the fire from the 
gunboat and battery proving too much for the endur¬ 
ance of Pettigrew’s troops, he withdrew. The 
destruction of life which he was anxious to avoid, 
occurred entirely within his own command, and the 
only 'casualties on our side were two men of the 
Ninety-second New York, wounded. 

Thus ended very unexpectedly what promised to 
be a determined effort to recover Newbern to Con¬ 
federate control, and to drive the Union troops from 
the shores of North Carolina. 

It would appear that the enemy in our front and 
left were waiting for the success of General Petti¬ 
grew on our right, and had he been successful in 
capturing the small force of infantry in his front, or 


22 


SERVICE WITPI BATTERY F, 


driving them across the river, the result might have 
been very difierent, for with a large force well sup¬ 
plied with artillery, posted on the east bank of the 
Neuse river, the city could have been easily shelled, 
and although' the crossing of the river would have 
been very difficult, and it is doubtful if with the force 
at his command it could have been done, the effect 
would have been to draw troops from our front to 
prevent the crossing, thus weakening the lines and 
making a direct attack on that point more sure of 
success. 

Upon the failure of General Pettigrew, the enemy 
withdrew from around Newbern, and their next 
movement was upon Washington, North Carolina. 

The prophecy of the Kaleigh Progress seemed to 
be correct. General Hill had inaugurated offensive 
operations in North Carolina, and our troops were 
put upon the defensive for the time being, although 
the campaign was of short duration. 

March 30th, the enemy appeared before Washing¬ 
ton, N. C., and commenced a siege of the place. 
Communication was entirely cut off, and General 
Foster, with a force of about twelve hundred men. 


FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGPIT ARTILLERY. 23 


consisting of the Twenty-seventh and Forty-fourth 
Massachusetts Infantry, a part of the Third New 
York Artillery, and Third New York Cavalry, and 
the First North Carolina Volunteers, were com¬ 
pletely shut in with a small supply of ammunition 
and rations. I believe there were one or more gun¬ 
boats in front of the town, which were also shut in. 

Washington, North Carolina, is situated on the 
Pamlico river, near the mouth of the Tar river, dis¬ 
tant from Newbern by land from twenty-five to thirty 
miles, and by water something over one hundred 
miles. Several strong batteries on the banks of the 
river below the town, together with a barricade 
across the channel, effectually prevented the passage 
of gunboats or supply vessels to the relief of the 
little garrison, so it was thought, but subsequent 
events caused a change of opinion on that point. 

April 8th, a comparatively small force, under the 
command of Brigadier-General T. B. Spiiiola, left 
Newbern to march overland to the relief of General 
Foster, and by attacking the enemy in the rear, 
raise the siege and liberate the garrison. Battery F 
accompanied this command. The troops met with 


24 


SERVICE WITH BATTERY F, 


no resistance until on the ninth of April, Blount’s 
creek, a stream sufficiently large to require a bridge 
for crossing, was reached. Here the enemy were 
found with artillery posted to resist further advance. 
As our advance reached this bridge, it was found to 
have been rendered impassible by removing the plank 
flooring, and a halt at once took place. I remember 
the road we were on lay through a heavily wooded 
country, and when the battery, which was near the 
right, halted, there was no position to be seen suffi¬ 
ciently open for artillery maneuvering. We were 
directed to open fire, and Captain Belger ordered 
” action left,” as we stood in the road. While the 
Captain was superintending the movements of the 
first piece, accompanied by myself — being First Ser¬ 
geant at the time — and the two buglers, and before 
a shot had been fired by us, he was severely wounded 
in the thigh by a ball from a case shot from the ene¬ 
my’s guns, which exploded directly in our front, 
killing the Captain’s horse and two battery horses. 
This shot was the first from the enemy, and I think 
the result was not proof of proficiency on the part of 
the gunner, but rather a chance shot, for no other 


FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY. 25 

during the hour which we were engaged did us any 
damage. In a very short time, considering the 
nature of the ground upon which we were, our guns 
were at work, and for an hour fired at, we did not 
know what, as nothing could be seen but woods. 
For a time, however, the shell and case shot which 
passed over our heads, and exploded in the woods in 
our rear, assured us that an enemy was somewhere in 
our front. I noticed but few troops pass to the front 
or right of our position in which direction the bridge 
lay, and if an effort was made to cross the bridge it 
must have been quickly abandoned, as the enemy’s 
fire having ceased, we were ordered to cease firing 
and retire. Of course being an enlisted man, I was 
not in possession of that knowledge of the situation 
whieh the commanding general was supposed to have, 
but it seemed to me, and was freely talked among the 
men of the battery, that had the attempt been 
pushed, as it should have been, the result might have 
been different. 

The return march commenced immediately, and at 
4 o’clock, p. M., April 10th, we arrived at our quar¬ 
ters in Newbern with no other loss than that men- 


3 


26 


SEKVICE WITH BATTERY F, 


tioned above. After Captain Belger had been placed 
in an ambulance and taken a short distance to the 
rear, I stripped his horse of its equipments, placed 
them in a baggage-wagon, and when the firing 
ceased, rode back to see if the Captain was comfort¬ 
able. I found him stretched out in the ambulance, 
and upon inquiry as to his condition, was greeted 

with the reply, ''The - cusses have got my 

horse,” a spirited animal, prized very highly. I 
assured him his horse was dead, "dead as a door 
nail.” He then said, "Well, they have got my 
equipments,” and not until I had explained to him 
that the equipments were safe, did he reply to my 
inquiry. Evidently he had been imagining, as he lay 
helpless in the ambulance, his fav^orite horse, well 
equipped, being ridden by some confederate officer, 
and the thought was troubling him more at that 
moment than his own condition. 

The official report of the operations of the battery 
on this expedition, made by First Lieutenant Thomas 
Simpson, who succeeded Captain Belger in com¬ 
mand, states that during the engagement on the 
ninth, "three hundred and two (302) rounds of 



FIKST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY. 27 


ammunition, principally case shot and shell,” were 
expended. 

The next movement for the relief of the garrison 
at Washington, occurred on the night of April 12th, 
when the steam transport " Escort,” with tlie Fifth 
Khode Island Volunteers on board, and a supply of 
ammunition and stores, ran the batteries on the river, 
and arrived safely at the wharf in Washington with¬ 
out loss. On the 14th, General Foster returned 
with the same steamer by daylight. In passing the 
batteries on the return trip, the steamer received 
forty-seven shots, losing the pilot, killed, and seven 
of the crew killed or wounded. 

Referring to the attempt of General Spinola to 
reinforce General Foster or raise the siege, a report 
was printed in the New York Tribune, on the author¬ 
ity of a " gentleman who came from Newbern, a 
passenger on board the 'Mary Sanford,’ that about 
fifty men of one of the Rhode Island batteries, who 
were with him, had volunteered to take the Rebel 
battery, and were about to do it, when one of Gen¬ 
eral Spinola’s aids rode up with peremptory order to 
retreat.” Of course we do not know the name of 


28 


SERVICE WITH BATTERY F, 


the gentleman, and cannot learn how he became pos¬ 
sessed of so much knowledge, but I feel bound to 
state, in the interest of truth, that no Rhode Island 
artillery men volunteered to perform such duty, 
however brave and patriotic such action might have 
been. The men of the battery, except the sergeants, 
who carried sabres, were not armed, and it would 
have been a novel sight in war for fifty unarmed men 
to storm a battery in broad daylight. 

General Foster arrived in Newbern from Wash¬ 
ington, N. C., by the steamer ” Escort,” on the 14th of 
April, and on the 17th, with the force that could be 
collected in and around Newbern, amounting to 
about ten thousand men, started to return overland 
to the relief of the garrison, and to raise the siege. 
Battery F accompanied the expedition, being as¬ 
signed to General Heckman’s brigade. The com¬ 
mand marched over the same route as was taken by 
General Spinola the previous week. On the 18th 
of April we arrived at Blount’s Creek, found the 
bridge unprotected, and signs that the enemy were 
in full retreat, having abandoned the attempt to cap¬ 
ture Washington and the small force defending it, as 


FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY. 


29 


they did the similar attempt upon Newbern the pre¬ 
vious month, although a much more determined 
effort was made at the former place. After a short 
delay to repair the bridge over the creek, and render 
it passable for the troops, the force pushed forward, 
arriving at Washington during the afternoon of the 
19th. The Battery remained outside until the 21st, 
when it entered the town. The enemy had entirely 
disappeared, evidently abandoning the siege, upon 
discovering that an unarmed wooden transport could 
safely pass their batteries on the banks of the Pam¬ 
lico river, which were thought to have been an 
effectual blockade. 

The Battery remained at Washington until April 
28th, when it returned to its quarters at Newbern by 
transport, arriving soon after midnight, having been 
absent twelve days. I am not competent to criticise 
the movements of either side during the campaign 
which commenced early in March, with the attempt 
to capture Newbern, and which ended on the 19th of 
April, when the enemy had retreated and disap¬ 
peared from before Washington. The slight losses 
of men and material would seem to indicate that the 




30 


SERVICE WITH. BATTERY E, 


movements of both armies were easily resisted ; that 
there was a lack of that persistence which insured 
success ; and compared with the desperate encount¬ 
ers of the later campaigns of the war, were not much 
more than skirmishes. 

The health of the men continued good, six only 
being absent sick, one of whom had not recovered 
from wounds received in December previous. 

The alterations and casualties in the battery dur¬ 
ing the four months covered by this paper, left the 
aggregate of commissioned officers one more, and 
enlisted men four less, than it was on the first day of 
January, 1863, and is accounted for as follows ; Sec¬ 
ond Lieutenant Albert E. Adams, whose appointment 
dated December 4, 1862, joined for duty January 
5, 1863. Four enlisted men were discharged; two 
to accept promotion, viz. : First Sergeant Alexander 
M. Massie, as Second Lieutenant in the Third Kesi- 
ment, Rhode Island Heavy Artillery, subsequently 
transferred to the Veteran Reserve Corps, and Quar¬ 
termaster Sergeant Walter M. Knight, as Second 
Lieutenant, Battery H, First Rhode Island Light 
Artillery; and two on Surgeon’s certificate of dis- 


FIRST RHODE ISLAND LIGHT ARTILLERY. 31 

ability, viz. : privates John Wood, at Newbern, 
January 14th, 1863, and Philip L. Bassett, at 
Annapolis, Md., December 2, 1862, information of 
which was received at the battery February 10, 
1863. There was no gain during this period, conse¬ 
quently the strength of the battery April 30th, as 
appears upon the monthly return bearing that date, 
was five commissioned officers, and one hundred and 
thirty-four enlisted men, with six twelve-pounder 
Napoleon guns—light twelves we called them — 
caissons, etc., complete, and one hundred and two 
horses. An addition of sixteen enlisted men would 
have given the maximum number allowed. 



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